Contact assembly

ABSTRACT

A contact assembly for an electrical connector is provided and generally includes a plurality of first contact bodies and a plurality of second contact bodies. The plurality of first contact bodies include contact surfaces that provide a first contact plane. The plurality of second contact bodies include contact surfaces that provide a second contact plane that is spaced apart from and projecting beyond the first contact plane by a height. The plurality of second contact bodies are elastically deflectable to the first contact plane.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of the filing date under 35 U.S.C. §119(a)-(d) of German Patent Application No. 102018214203.3, filed onAug. 22, 2018.

FILED OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a contact assembly and, more particularly, to acontact assembly for an electrical connector.

BACKGROUND

Plug and socket connectors generally include contact assemblies totransmit electrical signals, for example. The plug connector includes acontact that is plugged into a plug receiving opening in the plug-indirection and bears on contact surfaces of the socket connector. In thiscase, the theoretical number of contact surfaces can be too small, as aresult of which an insufficient electrical contacting is obtained. Anincrease in the number of contact surfaces can lead to the plug contactnot being able to make uniform contact the contact surfaces of thesocket.

Therefore, there is a need to provide a solution that enables a stableelectrical and mechanical contacting between the plug and socketconnector assembly.

SUMMARY

A contact assembly for an electrical connector is provided and generallyincludes a plurality of first contact bodies and a plurality of secondcontact bodies. The plurality of first contact bodies include contactsurfaces that provide a first contact plane. The plurality of secondcontact bodies include contact surfaces that provide a second contactplane that is spaced apart from and projecting beyond the first contactplane by a height. The plurality of second contact bodies areelastically deflectable to the first contact plane.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be described by way of example with reference tothe accompanying Figures, of which:

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a socket connector according to theinvention;

FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of a socket housing of a socketconnector according to the invention;

FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of a contact assembly according to theinvention, with a base plate; and

FIG. 4 shows a sectional view of a socket connector having contactassembly a according to the invention, showing a plug connector insertedtherein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, the invention is described in greater detail by way ofexample using exemplary embodiments with reference to the attachedfigures. In the figures, elements which correspond to one another indesign and/or function are provided with the same reference symbols.

The combination of features shown and described with the individualexemplary embodiments serves solely the purposes of explanation. Inaccordance with the statements above, it is possible to dispense with afeature from an exemplary embodiment if its technical effect is of noimportance in a particular application. Conversely, in accordance withthe statements above, a further feature can be added in an exemplaryembodiment if its technical effect is meant to be advantageous ornecessary to a particular application.

Now with reference to FIGS. 1-4, a socket connector 1 according to theinvention is shown. To aid comprehension, the description uses aCartesian coordinate system, with a plug-in direction S, a transversedirection Q and a height direction H. The embodiments depicted in thefigures are given merely by way of example and serve the purpose ofexplanation. Thus, a plug contact can also be provided with a contactassembly 3 according to the invention, for example.

FIG. 1 shows an exemplary embodiment of the socket connector 1. Thesocket connector 1 generally includes a socket housing 2, which has beenformed from a metal sheet by stamping and bending and which is shown inFIG. 2 in a further schematic perspective view, and a contact assembly 3according to the invention.

The socket housing 2 includes an upper side 4 and a lower side 6 whichare spaced apart from one another in the height direction H. The upperside 4 and lower side 6 are connected to one another by side walls 8which extend in the height direction H. The side walls 8 are formed bysprings 10, which enables the upper side 4 to move relative to the lowerside 6 along the height direction H. The socket housing 2 can be widenedand/or compressed along the height direction H. The socket housing 2surrounds a plug connector receiving space 12 which increases in thecase of widening in the height direction H and decreases in the case ofcompression. A part of the plug connector receiving space 12 is formedby a plug receiving opening 14, into which a plug contact 16,schematically depicted in FIG. 1, can be plugged along the plug-indirection S into the socket housing 2. In particular, the insertion ofthe plug contact 16 can lead to the socket housing 2 and the plugreceiving opening 14 being widened. A plug connector 15 according to theinvention is likewise depicted in FIG. 1 and includes a plug contact 16and a socket connector 1 according to the invention.

FIG. 1 shows a force-free state 17, which, in the example shown, isalready a first widened position 19. By inserting the plug contact 16into the plug receiving opening 14, the socket housing 2 and the plugreceiving opening 14 can be widened further and cross over into a secondwidened position. By compression, for example by pressing together atthe upper side 4 and lower side 6, the socket housing 2 can becompressed in the height direction H, so that it can be introduced intoa housing 18 (not shown in greater detail in FIG. 1). Throughcompression, the socket housing 2 can cross over into a narrowedposition. When the force is removed, the socket housing 2 canautomatically cross over into the shown first widened position 19.

In an alternative configuration, the configuration in FIG. 1 can alsocorrespond to a narrowed position 20 and the socket housing 2 canfirstly be transferred into a widened position by plugging in the plugcontact 16.

In the shown embodiment, the socket housing 2 has a first catch 22 witha lock 24 positioned along a front region thereof with respect to theplug-in direction S. Through the first catch 22, the socket housing 2,in a narrowed position, can be retained in a corresponding housing 18.The lock 24 may automatically lock in place when the socket housing 2 isinserted and thereby establishes a form-fit (see FIG. 4).

Furthermore, in a rear region in the plug-in direction S, the sockethousing 2 possesses a second catch 26. The second catch 26 is configuredto establish a form-fit with the housing 18 in a widened position. Thesecond catch 26 is formed by a protrusion 28 which, in the embodimentshown, is attached to the upper side 4 and protrudes in the heightdirection H in relation to it.

The first catch 22 can establish, with the housing 16, a form-fit whichacts in the plug-in direction S, the second catch 26 being able toestablish, with the housing 16, a form-fit which acts counter to theplug-in direction S. The protrusion 28 and/or the lock 24 can be formedfrom the upper side 4 by stamping or embossing. Alternatively, or alsoadditionally, a lock 24 and/or a protrusion 28 can be present on thelower side 6.

In addition to the socket housing 2 shown in FIG. 2, the socketconnector 1 may include, by way of example, an embodiment of a contactassembly 3 according to the invention with a base plate 30 which isdepicted in a schematic perspective view in FIG. 3. The base plate 30 isprovided with several contact elements 32 which protrude from a surface34 of the base plate 30 in the direction of the plug receiving opening14.

The base plate 30 has a free end which can be plugged into the sockethousing 2 against the plug-in direction S up to the stop, so that atleast one section of the base plate 30 is placed in the socket housing 2and the contact elements 32 project into the plug connector receivingspace 12.

For this purpose, the socket housing 2 is provided at its end located tothe front in the plug-in direction S with a receiving pocket 36 whichhas a substantially U-shaped cross-section with two legs 38 spaced apartfrom one another in the height direction H and a base 40 which connectsthe two legs 38 to one another in a plane parallel to a plane spanned bythe plug-in direction S and height direction H. The free end of the baseplate 30 can be introduced into the receiving pocket 36 against theplug-in direction S. In this case, the free end of the base plate 30comes to a stop against the base 40 of the receiving pocket 36 and isencompassed by the legs 38. The receiving pocket 36 can be formed bybending, for example, one leg 38 being formed by the lower side 6 of thesocket housing 2. The receiving pocket 36 is thus form-fit with the baseplate 30 counter to the plug-in direction S.

The lower side 6 of the socket 4 projects out beyond the side walls 8 inthe plug-in direction S. On the projecting section, the lower side 6 isprovided with lugs 42 which can be bent around a protrusion 44protruding in the height direction. As a result, the base plate 30 canbe retained in a more stable manner in the socket housing 2. Theprotrusion 44 can have a depression 46 around which the lug 42 can bebent, so that the lug 42 is planked by the protrusion 44. Thus, aform-fit can be established in and counter to the plug-in direction S bythe lug 42 and the base plate 30 can be connected to the socket asrigidly as possible in terms of movement.

That end of the base plate 30 is remotely positioned from the sockethousing 2 and is, as depicted in FIG. 1, attached to a cable 48 with anelectrical terminal 50, for example a cable lug, or an electricalconductor. For example, the base plate 30 can contain a crimp connectionregion in order to produce an electrical connection between the cableand the plug contact. The base plate can be introduced into the socketin the socket connector and in this case can project out of the socketat the end located to the rear in the plug-in direction, wherein theprojecting part can be affixed indirectly or directly to a terminal oran electrical conductor. For example, the base plate 30 can also bewelded to an electrical, conductive contact body.

In the shown embodiment, the base plate 30 includes an electricalterminal 49 which can be connected to the cable 48. The base plate 30can, for example, be connected to the electrical conductor 50 in amaterially bonded manner by welding. Electrical signals or electricalpower can be transmitted to the plug contact 16 through the socketconnector 1.

The base plate 30 is preferably formed from an electrically conductivematerial, in particular from copper or a copper alloy.

A first group of contact elements 32 is formed by a rigid, convexlycurved contact body 52, on the peak 53 of which there is formed acontact surface 54 for contacting an electrically conductive contact 55,such as a plug contact 16, for example. The contact surfaces 54 of thecontact bodies 52 point in the direction of the plug receiving opening14. The contact bodies 52 can in particular be configured in amechanically robust manner, so that the plug contact 16 can rest stablyon the contact surface 54. The contact surfaces 54 of the contact bodies52 in this case form a first contact plane 56 which is substantiallyparallel to a plane spanned by the plug-in direction S and transversedirection Q and which delimits the plug receiving opening 14 in theheight direction H.

In order to obtain a statically determined system in a simple manner,the first contact plane 56 may be spanned by three contact surfaces 54which are arranged in a triangle, wherein two contact surfaces arepositioned in a row running in the transverse direction Q. When the plugcontact 16 is plugged into the plug receiving opening 14, the plugcontact 16 bias mainly on the contact surfaces 54 of the first contactplane 56. Therefore, the mechanical stability of a plug connector 15according to the invention can be further improved by the staticallydetermined system.

As shown, the contact surfaces 54 can be arranged in a triangle in orderto create a statically determined contact plane in a simple manner. Inparticular, the first contact plane 56 can be spanned by three contactsurfaces 54 since, from a mechanical point of view, the plug contact 16bears mainly on the contact surfaces 54 of the first contact plane 56.At least of the first contact plane 56, the mechanical stability of thesystem can be further improved by the static nature of the contactsurfaces 54. The contact surfaces 54 can be contacted uniformly, and theplug contact 16 can be prevented from swaying.

To compensate for tolerances and to improve the electrical andmechanical contacting of the plug contact 16, the contact assembly 3 andthe socket connector 1 have a second contact plane 66 spaced apart fromthe first contact plane 56 and projecting beyond the first contact plane56 in the height direction H, this second contact plane 66 being spannedby a plurality of contact surfaces 68 on contact bodies 70 that areelastically deflectable at least up to the first contact plane 56.

The elastically deflectable contact bodies 70 are formed by contacttongues 72, which extend from the base plate 30 in the height directionH and counter to the plug-in direction S up to a convexly curved freeend 74. Each contact tongue 72 includes a peak 75 of which there arearranged the contact surfaces 68 of the second plane. The second contactplane 66 is likewise designed in a statically determined manner withthree contact bodies 70 arranged in a triangle. The contact surfaces 68of the second contact plane 66 can thus also be contacted uniformly bythe plug contact 16.

The elastically deflectable contact bodies 70 of the second contactplane 66 can be formed by the contact tongues 72 that extend obliquelyto the plug-in direction, towards a receptacle. In an exemplaryembodiment, the contact tongues 72 can in this case be arranged at anangle between approximately 30° and 150° to the plug-in direction,wherein the contact tongues 72 are connected at one end to the baseplate 30 and are convexly bent at the free end. The contact surface 68can be formed at the free end of the contact tongue 72 and be arrangedsubstantially parallel to the contact surface 54 of the first contactplane 56 and the plug-in direction. The contact tongues 72 can extend inthe direction of a plug receiving opening 14 situated to the front inthe plug-in direction.

In a particularly advantageous configuration, the contact tongues 72 canhowever extend in the direction away from the opening 14, such that thecontact tongues 74 form a run-on slope along which the plug contact 16can slide as the plug contact 16 is being plugged into the plugreceiving opening 14 and in this case the contact tongues 72 push in thedirection of the first contact plane 56.

The contact tongues 72 can taper toward the free end. The widthtransverse to the plug-in direction can decrease towards the free end,as a result of which a trapezoidal configuration of the contact tongues72 arises and the distribution of stress in a contact tongue 72 isoptimized.

In particular, the material thickness, particularly in the direction ofthe receptacle, of the contact tongues 72, can decrease towards the freeend. This can improve the distribution of stress once again.Furthermore, this can lead to a stabilization in the contact surface.The density of the material at the free end can increase in this case,as a result of which the contact surface becomes mechanically moresolid. The decrease in the material thickness can be produced bymilling, for example.

As shown, the second contact plane 66 can likewise be spanned by threecontact surfaces 68, as a result of which it can be ensured that thesecond contact plane 66 is likewise statically arranged in a simplemanner. As a result, six contact surfaces are furthermore constantly inengagement with the plug contact 16, wherein the contact surfaces 54 ofthe first contact plane 56 span a contact plane which is fixed comparedto the second contact plane 66 and the contact surfaces 68 of the secondcontact plane 66 span a flexible contact plane which is movable relativeto the fixed contact plane. Both contact planes are staticallydetermined, so that the plug contact can bear securely on all contactsurfaces.

In an exemplary embodiment, as shown, the contact surfaces 68 of thesecond contact plane 66 can likewise be arranged in a triangle, with thetriangle of the first contact plane 56 being arranged opposite thetriangle of the second contact plane 66 and with them overlapping andthe corners being formed in each case by a contact surface. Inparticular, one corner of the first triangle can be arranged on a baseof the second triangle and conversely one corner of the second trianglecan be arranged on a base of the first triangle. Through the arrangementin overlapping triangles, it is possible to achieve a particularlyspace-saving configuration of the contact assembly 3, wherein, in afirst depth situated in the plug-in direction, two contact surfaces ofone contact plane and one contact surface of the other contact plane arecontacted and, in a second depth situated in the plug-in direction andspaced apart from the first depth, two contact surfaces of the othercontact plane and one contact surface of the one contact plane arecontacted.

In order to create a particularly contact assembly 3 and/or a socketconnector 1 that is compact, it is particularly advantageous if acontact body 52 of the first contact plane 56 is arranged in a firstrow, arranged in the transverse direction Q, between two contact bodies70 of the second contact plane 66, and a contact body of the secondcontact plane 66 between two contact bodies 52 of the first contactplane 56 is conversely arranged in a second row spaced apart from thefirst row in the plug-in direction S.

The contact tongues 72 taper in the direction of the free end 74, suchthat they have a trapezoidal tongue back 76. As a result, the stressdistribution of the stress acting on the contact tongues 72 due to theelastic deflection can be improved. Furthermore a material thickness 78decreases in the height direction H, as a result of which thedistribution of stress is further improved and the solidity of thecontact surface 68 can be further reinforced.

According to another configuration (not shown), the contact tongues 72can also extend in the plug-in direction S and height direction H awayfrom the base plate 30. As a result, the plug contact 16 can slide alongthe tongue back 76 during plugging-in and deflect the contact tongue 72in the direction of the first contact plane 56.

The contact surfaces 54, 68 of the first and second contact planes 56,66 are formed integrally as a monolithic component 80. For this purpose,the contact bodies 52, 70 can be formed by plastic deformation. Forexample, the contact bodies 52, 70 can be formed by stamping. A contacttongue 72 extends in each case into a contact receiving passageway 82which passes through the base plate 30.

The contact surfaces 54, 68 are configured in an undulating, staggeredmanner, as a result of which the contacting of the plug contact 16improves once again.

The contact planes 56, 66 are spaced apart from one another in theheight direction H by the height 84, wherein the first contact plane 56delimits the plug receiving opening 14 and the second contact plane 66is arranged in the plug receiving opening 14.

The rigid contact bodies 52 of the first contact plane 56 can be rigidin particular compared to the contact bodies 70 of the second contactplane 66. The spring stiffness of the rigid contact bodies 52 canpreferably be stiffer than the spring stiffness of the springs 10.

The spring strength of the springs 10 can in particular be stronger thanthe spring strength of the elastically deflectable contact bodies 70, sothat the contact bodies 70 can be pushed in the direction of the firstcontact plane 56 when the plug contact 16 is being plugged into the plugreceiving opening 14. In particular, a minimum normal force of the plugconnector 15 can deflect the second contact plane 66 so far that thefirst and second contact planes 56, 66 are arranged in a common plane.

The socket has a press-on lug 90, which delimits the plug receivingopening 14 in the height direction H and which is spaced apart from thefirst contact plane 56, so that the plug receiving opening 14 extends inthe height direction H from the first contact plane 56 to the press-onlug 90. The second contact plane 66 is arranged between the press-on lug90 and the first contact plane 56, such that the press-on lug 90 pushesa plug contact 16 against the contact surfaces 68 of the second contactplane 66 and deflects the contact bodies 70 in the direction of thefirst contact plane 56 by the height 84, such that the contact surfaces54, 68 are arranged on a common plane.

The elastically deflectable contact bodies 70 of the second contactplane 66 can thus compensate for a tolerance and provide additionalelectrically conductive contact surfaces 68, while the rigid contactbodies 52 of the first contact plane 56, alongside electricalcontacting, serves the purpose of mechanical stabilization. From amechanical point of view, the plug contact 16 bears mainly on thecontact surfaces 54 of the first contact plane 56.

Therefore, through the socket connector 1 according to the invention, amechanical and electrically stable contacting can be achieved with aplurality of contact surfaces 54, 68.

As a result of the aforementioned design, the number of electricallyconductive contacted contact surfaces 54, 68 can be increased in asimple manner, wherein the elastically deflectable contact bodies 70 ofthe second contact plane 66 can compensate for tolerances. From amechanical point of view, the plug contact 16 bears mainly on thecontact surfaces 54 of the first contact plane 56, which makes thesystem mechanically more stable.

The foregoing illustrates some of the possibilities for practicing theinvention. Many other embodiments are possible within the scope andspirit of the invention. The combination of features shown and describedin the individual exemplary embodiments serves solely the purposes ofexplanation. The disclosed invention utilizes the above identifiedcomponents, as a system, in order to more efficiently construct anelectrical connector for a particular purpose. Therefore, more or lessof the aforementioned components can be used to conform to thatparticular purpose. In addition, according to the above statements, afurther feature can be added in an exemplary embodiment if its technicaleffect is meant to be advantageous or necessary for a particularapplication. It is, therefore, intended that the foregoing descriptionbe regarded as illustrative rather than limiting, and that the scope ofthe invention is given by the appended claims together with their fullrange of equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A contact assembly for an electrical connector,comprising: a base plate; a plurality of first contact bodies formed andextending from the base plate and having contact surfaces providing afirst contact plane, the first contact plane spanned by at least threecontact surfaces of the plurality of first contact bodies; and aplurality of second contact bodies formed and extending from the baseplate and having contact surfaces and providing a second contact planespaced apart from and projecting beyond the first contact plane by aheight, the plurality of second contact bodies elastically deflectableto the first contact plane.
 2. The contact assembly according to claim1, wherein the plurality of first contact bodies are rigid compared tothe plurality of second contact bodies.
 3. The contact assemblyaccording to claim 1, wherein the second contact plane is spanned by atleast three contact surfaces of the plurality of second contact bodies.4. The contact assembly according to claim 1, wherein the base plate isconnected to an electrical conductor.
 5. The contact assembly accordingto claim 1, wherein the plurality of first contact bodies are formed byplastic deformation of the base plate.
 6. The contact assembly accordingto claim 5, wherein the plurality of second contact bodies are formed byplastic deformation of the base plate.
 7. The contact assembly accordingto claim 1, wherein the contact surfaces of the plurality of firstcontact bodies are convexly curved.
 8. The contact assembly according toclaim 7, wherein the contact surfaces of the plurality of second contactbodies are convexly curved.
 9. The contact assembly according to claim8, wherein the plurality of second contact bodies are trapezoidal shapedmembers.
 10. A socket connector for connection to a plug connector,comprising: a socket having a plug receiving opening leading into a plugconnector receiving space; and a contact assembly having a base plateadapted to the socket, the base plate having: a plurality of firstcontact bodies extending into the plug connector receiving space andhaving contact surfaces providing a first contact plane; and a pluralityof second contact bodies extending into the plug connector receivingspace and having contact surfaces, the plurality of second contactbodies providing a second contact plane spaced apart from and projectingbeyond the first contact plane by a height, the plurality of secondcontact bodies elastically deflectable to the first contact plane. 11.The socket connector according to claim 10, wherein the base plate issecured to the socket in a form-fitting manner.
 12. The socket connectoraccording to claim 11, wherein the plurality of second contact bodiesinclude contact tongues extending obliquely to a plug-in direction. 13.The socket connector according to claim 12, wherein plurality of firstcontact bodies are rigid compared to the plurality of second contactbodies.
 14. The socket connector according to claim 13, wherein thefirst contact plane is spanned by at least three contact surfaces of theplurality of first contact bodies.
 15. The socket connector according toclaim 13, wherein the contact surfaces of the plurality of first contactbodies and the plurality of second contact bodies are convexly curved.16. The socket connector according to claim 13, wherein the plurality ofsecond contact bodies are trapezoidal shaped members.
 17. The socketconnector according to claim 13, wherein the plurality of first contactbodies are formed by plastic deformation of the base plate.
 18. Thesocket connector according to claim 17, wherein the plurality of secondcontact bodies are formed by plastic deformation of the base plate. 19.A contact assembly for an electrical connector, comprising: a baseplate; a plurality of first contact bodies extending from the base plateand having contact surfaces providing a first contact plane, theplurality of first contact bodies arranged in a triangle and including afirst contact body and a second contact body arranged in a first rowextending in a transverse direction of the base plate and a thirdcontact body arranged outside of the first row and between the first andsecond contact bodies in the transverse direction of the base plate; anda plurality of second contact bodies extending from the base plate andhaving contact surfaces and providing a second contact plane spacedapart from and projecting beyond the first contact plane by a height,the plurality of second contact bodies elastically deflectable to thefirst contact plane.
 20. The contact assembly according to claim 19,wherein the plurality of first contact bodies and the plurality ofsecond contact bodies are formed from the base plate.
 21. The contactassembly according to claim 19, wherein the plurality of second contactbodies are arranged in a triangle and include a first contact body and asecond contact body arranged in a second row extending in the transversedirection of the base plate and a third contact body arranged outside ofthe second row and between the first and second contact bodies of theplurality of second contact bodies in the transverse direction of thebase plate.